This was asked by a reporter recently, and I thought I’d publish my full remarks…

We live in a time where people have a growing concern for our environment– loss of biodiversity, pollution, social injustices, and fossil fuel dependency. This concern has driven millions of people to choose a more balanced and healthy lifestyle. These consumers are known at the LOHAS (Lifestyle of the Healthy and Sustainable) market, and are about 50 million people in the US today. This market represents individuals who are willing to pay more to have an organic, healthy lifestyle that supports sustainable systems.

Vibrant Events was started because I feel that the wedding industry has missed the opportunity to support the sustainable economy. It sells over-consumption and unsustainable products, trying to get brides and grooms to buy more, more, more. Until [2007], it was extraordinarily difficult for couples to fully integrate their sustainable lifestyles into their wedding. It took 1) a lot of research and work to find the right products and services, and 2) it was hard to find sources that lived up to a certain refined style aesthetic people wanted for their wedding. But now with the onset of companies like Organic Bouquet, Brilliant Earth, and the HauteGreen movement happening in NYC, there are plenty of high quality, and high style sustainable alternatives to meet every couples needs.

Within the green wedding market there has been a wonderful trend in wedding gowns. The fashion industry has been slow to green itself, for a number of reasons, so I can’t be more happy to see today the amazing trend among gown designers to think eco-friendly. I’m certain this will continue and grow as more designers think outside of the box, and create stylish and sustainable alternatives for the green-minded bride!

But of course, my favorite trend within green weddings, is the ability for couples to offset the carbon emissions from the event through several organizations like CarbonFund.org. Though still controversial, I’m a big believer in using innovative solutions to combat the challenges we face environmentally and socially, and to me, carbon offsetting is a solution we can engage in now. I like that kind of immediate gratification, and I think most brides and grooms do too!